Reaction-powered sprinkler nozzle lock

ABSTRACT

A metal strap apertured at its opposite ends to be tied by an already available setscrew around a reaction-powered sprinkler nozzle spring-valved receptacle to capture a thread-forming wing screw to penetrate said receptacle at a point where it will lock the nozzle neck in valve-opening position in said receptacle.

United States Patent Inventor Thomas A. Cummins 26063 E. Baseline Space 36, San Bernardino, Calif. 92410 Appl. No. 886,947

Filed Dec. 22, I969 Patented June 29, I971 REACTION-POWERED SPRINKLER NOZZLE LOCK 6 Claims, 4 Drawing Figs.

US. Cl 239/201, 239/579, 24/278 Int. Cl A01g25/06, 865d 63/00 Field ofSearch 24/278;

[5 6] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 3,094,366 9/1963 Harmon 24/278 X 3,494,373 2/1970 Horak et al 137/322 X FOREIGN PATENTS 551,932 3/1943 Great Britain 24/278 254,558 I2/1926 Italy 24/278 Primary Examiner-Allen N. Knowles Assistant Examiner-Edwin D. Grant Attorney-Dana E. Keech ABSTRACT: A metal strap apertured at its opposite ends to be tied by an already available setscrew around a reactionpowered sprinkler nozzle spring-valved receptacle to capture a thread-forming wing screw to penetrate said receptacle at a point where it will lock the nozzle neck in valve-opening position in said receptacle REACTION-POWERED SPRINKLER NOZZLE LOCK SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Reaction-powered self-rotating sprinkler nozzles are very widely employed in the irrigation of farms, gardens and landscaping in both private and public domains. The nozzles themselves are complex and to minimize the investment in equipment, each sprinkler outlet in the water supply system is provided with a spring-closed valve, which closes excepting when a sprinkler nozzle is connected therewith, and the nozzles are removed from the receptacles in one area and attached to the receptacles in the next, as the watering proceeds from area to area.

One style of equipment which has become conventional in this field mounts the nozzle on the upper end of a tubular neck having a pair of diametral external lugs near its lower end and a radial handle for use in pressing the neck into the receptacle to collapse its spring and open its valve, and then rotate the neck clockwise to interlock its lugs with recesses provided internally in the receptacle thus holding the valve open and uniting the nozzle with the receptacle.

After all the receptacles in an area are thus fitted with nozzles, the water is turned on. When that area has been watered, the water is turned off and each nozzle is pressed downwardly and rotated counterclockwise a half turn, whereupon it may be lifted freely from the receptacle, the valve in which closes as pressure on the spring is relaxed.

After a certain amount of wear in this equipment, there is a tendency for the diametral lugs to escape from the recesses in the receptacle in which they are trapped, resulting in malfunctioning or shutting off of the nozzle. As it is not practical to constantly attend an area while it is being watered, this defect in equipment results in inadequate watering in places and excessive watering in others, and, in some cases, throwing water outside the area, as on public sidewalks, streets and highways.

It is a primary object of the present invention to inexpensively correct the equipment defect above noted and thus eliminate the malfunctioning caused thereby.

A secondary object is to prolong the life of this equipment by providing a simple inexpensive facility for positively locking the nozzle in assembled relation with the valve receptacle, whereby it will no longer be expedient to junk equipment due to failure of the nozzle to remain locked in the receptacle.

Another object is to utilize features already conventional in the equipment to be improved and combine these in a new way with new features to solve the major problem above pointed out. For instance, a water escape hole is provided in that equipment in the shell of said receptacle. The present invention provides a thread-cutting wing screw for cutting its way through said hole to project behind a locking lug to positively prevent counterclockwise rotation of the nozzle neck in the receptacle. The equipment also provides a setscrew for holding two members of the receptacle united. The invention provides a metal strap encircling the receptacle to capture the lug-locking thumbscrew and provides apertures in the extremities of said strap for insertion of said setscrew through said strap ends to unite the strap with the receptacle without interfering in any way with the setscrew performing its conventional function.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a plan view of the thread-cutting wing screw of the invention captured in the metal strap thereof.

FIG. 2 is a fragmentary vertical elevation of a spring-valved DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT through which said nozzle receives water and which screws onto threads 15 provided at the upper end of a tubular nozzle neck 16 having an arm 17 formed integral therewith and, near its lower end a pair of external diametrically opposed lugs 18 and 19.

The receptacle 12 includes a body 20 in the form of a hollow shell having a lower internally threaded opening which screws onto the upper end of riser pipe 11 to introduce water into a valve chamber 26 the upward passage of water from which is controlled by a spring valve 27. This valve includes an annular valve seat 28 which communicates upwardly between chamber 26 and a spring chamber 29 in which a coil spring 30 is confined. Resting on top of spring 30 and vertically slideable in chamber 29 is a spring-follower ring 31 having formed integrally therewith three circumferentially spaced vertical elements 32 which are united at their lower ends in a horizontal member 33 which has a central tapped hole therein for receiving a screw 34 for assembling thereon a rubber valve seal 35 and an underlying metal disc 40. The valve 27 operates automatically in the absence of downward pressure thereagainst to lift the valve seal 35 into snug contact with the valve seat 28 and thus close said valve.

The upper end of receptacle body 20 is slightly enlarged to accommodate a short counterbore 41 formed in the upper end of spring chamber 29 and is externally threaded at 42 to receive a receptacle cap 43 when the latter is screwed downwardly thereon. The cap 43 has a bore 44 for receiving the nozzle neck 16 when the latter is inserted downwardly therein. The cap 43 also has cored passages 45 and 46 formed outwardly therein, from the bore 44, in diametrically opposed relationship, for receiving lugs 18 and 19, said passages following substantially helical paths and each terminating at a blind end 47 against which said lugs come to rest when neck 16 is given a half revolution in a clockwise direction while said neck is being inserted downwardly into the receptacle 12. In

order for neck 16 to be so inserted, it must depress ring 31 and v the rubber valve seal 35 against the upward pressure of the coil spring 30 so as to compress said spring as shown in FIG. 3. Each of the cored passages 45 and 46 has a lug-depressing cam 48 which earns the lugs 18 and 19 must pass over during the half rotation which is given the neck 16 incidental to inserting it into the receptacle 12, with the result that at the conclusion of said rotation, the lugs 18 and 19 are forced upwardly by expansion of the coil spring 30 so as to be pocketed between the blind ends 47 of the core passages 45 and 46 and the downwardly extending lug-depressing cams 48.

The device above described is designed to retain the nozzle neck 16 locked in assembled relation with the receptacle 12 as shown in FIG. 3 until this nozzle is deliberately removed from the receptacle by a reverse manipulation of the nozzle neck 16 by pressing downwardly on arm 17 and giving said neck a half turn counterclockwise which releases the nozzle from engagement with the receptacle and permits it to be withdrawn readily upwardly therefrom.

receptacle with a nozzle mounted therein and equipped with the device of FIG. 1 to lock said nozzle against anticlockwise rotation in said receptacle.

FIG. 3 is a vertical sectional view taken on the line 3-3 of When the nozzle neck 16 is thus withdrawn from the receptacle 12 the upper end of the latter is automatically closed by a gravity-operated cover plate 49 hingedly mounted on a lug 50 cast integral with the cap 43. A lug 55 also cast integral with the cap 43 extends downwardly therefrom, said lug having a horizontal tappedhole 56 for receiving a setscrew 57 which is set snugly against the body of receptacle 12 after the cap has been screwed in place thereon to fix the cap 43 in a given rotational relationship with the receptacle body 20. Orienting lugs 58 are cast integral with the body 20 for use in properly aligning the cap 43 with said body.

The receptacle cap 43 is also provided with a water escape hole 59 located as shown in FIG. 4.

The sprinkling system 10 above described is part of the prior art and functions as described satisfactorily while it is new. As the result of wear, however, the functional efficiency of this equipment declines and it is for overcoming the deficiencies resulting from this decline that the present invention has been provided. This invention utilizes the structure of the system 10 with the addition thereto of an accessory-locking device 60 to overcome said deficiencies of system 10 and greatly prolong the operative life of this. The device 60 comprises a metal strap 61 which has apertures 62 and 63 provided in its opposite end portions and a smaller intermediate aperture 64. Also formed in the strap 61 is a notch 65 which is located about midway between aperture 64 and aperture 63. The end portion 70 of the strap 61 is then bent relative to the balance of the strap about an edge 71 which is at a 45anglc with said strap so that the strap end portion 70 having the aperture 63 extends downward at a right angle from the balance of the strap. The purpose of the strap 61 is to capture thread-cutting wing screw 72 having a handle 73 bent from the shank thereof.

The screw 72 is trapped on the strap 61 by inserting the screw through small aperture 64 of said strap and then inserting a collar 74 on the screw and crimping said collar to permanently affix it to the screw and thus prevent withdrawal of the latter through aperture 64.

The wing screw 72 of the invention is provided for screwing its way through hole 59 by virtue of the thread-cutting capacity of said screw so that said screw may be extended behind lug 18 as shown in PK}. 4 to positively lock the neck 16 in fully in serted relation with the receptacle 12. The small aperture 64 in which the wing screw 72 is captured on the strap 61 is so located with reference to the apertures 62 and 63 in the end portions of the strap that when the screw 72 is thus inserted in the hole 59, the setscrew 57 may be removed from the lug S5 and after inserting said screw through the apertures 62 and 63 said screw may be reinserted into the tapped hole 56 of lug 55 and reset against the receptacle body 20 as shown in FIG, 3 so as to perform its conventional function and also securely attach the opposite ends of metal strap 61 to receptacle 12.

lnasmuch as the wing screw 72 is captured by the metal strap 61 with this wing screw in a position to be optionally screwed into or out of the hole 59 ofthe receptacle cap 43, the present invention provides a means for embodying with the receptacle 12 a facility for optionally locking or unlocking the tubular nozzle neck 16 in fully assembled relation with the receptacle 12. By the addition of the present invention to the sprinkling system the effective working life of the system is thus prolonged indefinitely by investing the system with the capacity for continuing to render satisfactory service long after it previously had been considered fit only to be junked and replaced by new equipment.

A gasket 75 resting on spring-following ring 31 makes a watertight connection between nozzle neck 16 and bore 29.

lclaim:

1. ln combination:

a spring-valved sprinkler-nozzle-mounting water-supply receptacle; a sprinkler nozzle neck insertable into said receptacle to open the receptacle valve and having external lug means;

means on said receptacle for interlocking with said lug means when said neck is rotated clockwise in said receptacle to hold said valve open and retain said neck in said receptacle;

there being an aperture in the side of said receptacle ad jacent said lug means when said neck is so retained in said receptacle; and

manually manipulative means for penetrating said aperture for interposing said means in the path of said lug means to prevent counterclockwise rotation of said nozzle neck in said receptacle.

2. A combination as recited in claim 1 wherein said aperture-penetrating means comprises a self-thread-cutting wing screw having a shank with a handle formed thereon for manual operation;

and means for capturing said wing screw and securing it to said receptacle so that it is not readily detachable therefrom and is available for optional use as aforesaid for locking said nozzle neck in fully assembled relation with said receptacle.

3. A combination as recited in claim 2 wherein said screwcapturing means includes a headed setscrew provided on said receptacle;

a metal strap having an aperture intermediate its ends through which said wing screw extends; and

a collar mounted on said wing screw and cooperating with said wing screw handle to prevent withdrawal of said wing screw through said aperture in said strap, opposite end portions of said strap being provided with holes through which said setscrew is inserted whereby said strap is secured to said receptacle with said strap wrapped around the latter and with said wing screw captured by said strap and assembled with said receptacle with said screw free for alignment with said receptacle aperture.

4. A combination as recited in claim 3 wherein said setscrew lies in a transverse plane spaced axially from the transverse plane of said receptacle aperture, and wherein said strap is provided with one end thereof offset from the balance of the strap to effect an accommodation of the strap to said strapend-securing means and to the function of the strap-capturing said wing screw while leaving the same free for penetration of said receptacle aperture.

5. In a device for locking a tubular nozzle neck of a reaction-powered sprinkler nozzle in a water supply receptacle the latter having a water escape aperture located opposite locking lug means provided on said nozzle when the same is inserted in said receptacle, said receptacle also being provided with a headed setscrew for uniting separate elements of said receptacle in assembled relation, the combination of a metal strap having end portions apertured and adapted to encircle said receptacle with the apertured ends of said strap overlapping so that said strap may be readily assembled on said receptacle with said setscrew penetrating the apertures in the overlapping end portions of said strap;

a self-thread-cutting wing screw, there being an intermediate aperture in said strap through which said screw is inserted; and

a collar applied to said wing screw and crimped in place to capture said screw on said strap with said screw free to be aligned with said water escape aperture of said receptacle.

6. A device for locking a tubular nozzle neck of an impulsepowered sprinkler nozzle in a water supply receptacle, the latter having a water escape aperture opposite the location of locking lug means, provided on said nozzle, when said nozzle is inserted in said receptacle and rotated to lock said nozzle therein, said receptacle also being provided with a headed setscrew, said device comprising:

a metal strap having a hole to receive said setscrew to assemble said strap on said receptacle, said strap also having a second hole spaced from said first hole a distance at least as great as the distance between said setscrew and said water escape aperture;

a self-thread-cutting wing screw inserted through said second hole in said strap, said water aperture being penetrable by said screw to secure said screw in said receptacle and extend the screw inside the latter to engage said locking lug means to prevent accidental reverse rotation of said nozzle in said receptacle; and

an enlargement formed on said wing screw to prevent withdrawal of said screw from said second hole, when said screw is removed from said aperture. 

1. In combination: a spring-valved sprinkler-nozzle-mounting water-supply receptacle; a sprinkler nozzle neck insertable into said receptacle to open the receptacle valve and having external lug means; means on said receptacle for interlocking with said lug means when said neck is rotated clockwise in said receptacle to hold said valve open and retain said neck in said receptacle; there being an aperture in the side of said receptacle adjacent said lug means when said neck is so retained in said receptacle; and manually manipulative means for penetrating said aperture for interposing said means in the path of said lug means to prevent counterclockwise rotation of said nozzle neck in said receptacle.
 2. A combination as recited in claim 1 wherein said aperture-penetrating means comprises a self-thread-cutting wing screw having a shank with a handle formed thereon for manual operation; and means for capturing said wing screw and securing it to said receptacle so that it is not readily detachable therefrom and is available for optional use as aforesaid for locking said nozzle neck in fully assembled relation with said receptacle.
 3. A combination as recited in claim 2 wherein said screw-capturing means includes a headed setscrew provided on said receptacle; a metal strap having an aperture intermediate its ends through which said wing screw extends; and a collar mounted on said wing screw and cooperating with said wing screw handle to prevent withdrawal of said wing screw through said aperture in said strap, opposite end portions of said strap being provided with holes through which said setscrew is inserted whereby said strap is secured to said receptacle with said strap wrapped around the latter and with said wing screw captured by said strap and assembled with said receptacle with said screw free for alignment with said receptacle aperture.
 4. A combination as recited in claim 3 wherein said setscrew lies in a transverse plane spaced axially from the transverse plane of said receptacle aperture, and wherein said strap is provided with one end thereof offset from the balance of the strap to effect an accommodation of the strap to said strap-end-securing means and to the function of the strap-capturing said wing screw while leaving the same free for penetration of said receptacle aperture.
 5. In a device for locking a tubular nozzle neck of a reaction-powered sprinkler nozzle in a water supply receptacle the latter having a water escape aperture located opposite locking lug means provided on said nozzle when the same is inserted in said receptacle, said receptacle also being provided with a headed setscrew for uniting separate elements of said receptacle in assembled relation, the combination of a metal strap having end portions apertured and adapted to encircle said receptacle with the apertured ends of said strap overlapping so that said strap may be readily assembled on said receptacle with said setscrew penetrating the apertures in the overlapping end portions of said strap; a self-thread-cutting wing screw, there being an intermediate aperture in said strap through which said screw is inserted; and a collar applied to said wing screw and crimped in place to capture said screw on said strap with said screw free to be aligned with said water escape aperture of said receptacle.
 6. A device for locking a tubular nozzle neck of an impulse-powered sprinkler nozzle in a water supply receptacle, the latter having a water escape aperture opposite the location of locking lug means, provided on said nozzle, when said nozzle is inserted in said receptacle and rotated to lock said nozzle therein, said receptacle also being provided with a headed setscrew, said device coMprising: a metal strap having a hole to receive said setscrew to assemble said strap on said receptacle, said strap also having a second hole spaced from said first hole a distance at least as great as the distance between said setscrew and said water escape aperture; a self-thread-cutting wing screw inserted through said second hole in said strap, said water aperture being penetrable by said screw to secure said screw in said receptacle and extend the screw inside the latter to engage said locking lug means to prevent accidental reverse rotation of said nozzle in said receptacle; and an enlargement formed on said wing screw to prevent withdrawal of said screw from said second hole, when said screw is removed from said aperture. 